There is a frisson of surprise from the start: the Arnold Schoenberg Choir frolics in as the nymphs and shepherds from Dorilla in Tempe, en-couraging Bartoli to celebrate a 'Spring' which has a decided fragrance of deja vu. And the chilliest of the Four Seasons appears further into the recital as 'Gelido in ogni vena' from Farnace, revealing Bartoli's voice numbed with grief, gliding over those icy orchestral chords.

There is also a degree of bewilderment. Coarse-voiced period brass instruments herald Bartoli's riding of some particularly squally waves as tempest racks land and heart in 'Dopo un'orrida procella' from Griselda. The aria unleashes Bartoli's famous breathy, whispered coloratura, her flaming top register, and an enclosed, hollow chest-voice which seems to belong to neither of the other two. Bartoli tackles her discoveries with infectious glee, enjoying too the beguiling instrumental palette of Il Giardino Armonico, whose pair of flageolets, duetting over muted violins and pizzicato violas and cellos, calm the torments of love in 'Di due rai'. (Gramophone)

180g Audiophile Virgin Vinyl

Double LP

Recorded in Stephaniensaal, Grazer Congress, Graz, Austria, 21-27 July 1999

From the Original Masters of Universal Music

Audiophile Analogue Mastering by Rainer Maillard at Emil Berliner Studios

Pressed at Optimal Media GmbH in Germany

First Time Ever on Vinyl

Gatefold Jacket with Obi Strip

4-Page Lyric Sheet

Import

Musicians

Cecilia Bartoli mezzo soprano

Arnold Schoenberg Chor

Simon Schouten chorus master

Il Giardino Armonico

Giovanni Antonini conductor

Selections

Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)

Side 1:

Dell'aura al sussurrar (Dorilla in Tempe)

Dopo un'orrida procella (Griselda)

Di due rai languir costante* (Foa 28)

Qual favellar?... Andero, volero, gridero* (L'Orlando finto pazzo)

Side 2:

Zeffiretti, che sussurrate* (Foa 28)

Alma oppressa (La fida ninfa)

Dite, Oime (La fida ninfa)

Sventurata navicella* (Giustino)

Side 3:

Sorte, che m'invitasti... Ho nel petto un cor si forte* (Giustino)

Tra le follie... Siam navi all'onde algenti (L'Olimpiade)

Side 4:

Gelido in ogni vena (Farnace)

Anch'il mar par che sommerga* (Bajazet)

Di trombe guerriere (Teuzzone)

*World premiere recording